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NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

USS Jacob Bell

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Civil War Medal
Sidewheel Steamer:
  • Laid down in 1849 as a tug at Delamater Iron Works, New York for R.B. Forbes
  • Purchased at New York from O. T. Glover and F. R. Anthony, 22 August 1861
  • Commissioned USS Jacob Bell, 22 August 1861, LT. Edward P. McCrea in command
  • During the Civil War USS Jacob Bell was initially assigned to the Potomac Flotilla
  • Reassigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, and duty on the James River in May 1862
  • Reassigned to the Potomac Flotilla in September 1862
    Captured C.F. Ward, 17 October 1862
    Destroyed two schooners, 4 November, while on a reconnaissance mission up Nomini Creek, VA.
    Captured schooner Golden Leaf near Hosier's Creek, VA., 23 August 1863
    Also credited with taking two additional ships in 1864
  • Decommissioned, 13 May 1865, at Washington Navy Yard
  • Final Disposition, lost at sea, 6 November 1865, while being towed by USS Banshee to New York
    Specifications:
    Displacement 229 t.
    Length 141' 3"
    Beam 21'
    Depth 8' 1"
    Draft unknown
    Speed unknown
    Complement 48
    Armament
    one 8" Dahlgren smoothbore
    one 32-pdr
    Propulsion steam
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    Ynakee 112k A Civil War line engravings from Frank Leslie's Illustrated, 1861. The upper engraving depicts the U.S. Potomac Flotilla in the Potomac between Freestone Point, VA., and Indian Head, MD., to prevent the passage of Confederates from Virginia to Maryland. Features seen include (from left to right):
    Tugboat Murray; USS Jacob Bell;
    Indian Head, Maryland;
    USS Yankee;
    USS Penguin;
    USS Satellite;
    USS Seminole;
    Confederate battery at Freestone Point; and the mouth of the Occoquan River.
    The lower engraving depicts a scene in Falls Village, Virginia, which was occupied by Federal troops. It shows Taylor's Tavern and the northern extremity of the town.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH NH 59240    		 Robert Hurst
    Jacob Bell 93k Colored lithograph of USS Jacob Bell, circa the 1860s.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 52665-KN (Color).    		 Bill Gonyo
    Jacob Bell 56k Wash drawing by Clary Ray, August 1896 of USS Jacob Bell. Courtesy of the Navy Art Collection, Washington, DC.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 57838.    		 Bill Gonyo
    USS Jacob Bell
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 17 March 2017